An Evening with the Grandparents

As I've mentioned before, we do monthly birthdays at my grandparents' house (assuming there's a birthday that month... January happens to be our off month). Anyway, it turns out that the only time that everyone could meet was this coming weekend... which is Valentine's weekend.

Brad and I aren't huge celebraters of Vday. Don't get me wrong. I love the whole idea. I grew up watching my mom receive lavish gifts and flowers from my dad, then he'd take her out to some fancy restaurant, and I was usually left with a grandparent.
That doesn't happen in my home. Not only are diamonds just not in the budget, I just think it's silly to go to that extreme.
However, what I do want is a nice date with my husband. I'm good with Chick-Fil-A in the car and a good girly movie from Red Box. Yeah I know. I'm pretty low maintenance. Brad got lucky. I could've insisted to be totally spoiled like my parents did to/for me. But then he wouldn't have liked me. And really, nobody would have.

Anyway, back to my original story...

We had planned to go out this Saturday for Valentine's Day. It's our first date without the baby in a long time, and I need it.

I felt bad, since my grandparents really look forward to seeing Noah, so we decided to visit last night. I think it turned out better that way, honestly. They got some good one-on-one time with their great-grandbaby. To quote my Granddaddy talking to Noah: "I get to hold ya this time. Every time I try to hold ya, someone else comes n grabs ya."



So true.

Now everyone knows that when you enter into the home of a Southern lady (particularly a grandmother), you might as well check any diet you're on at the door. There's no way you're getting out of there without eating.

Here's how the conversation went:

MamMaw B: "Are you hungry? We just finished eating supper, but we've got plenty left."
Me: "I'm good."
MamMaw B: "Are you sure? I've got some macaroni and cheese, and livermush (I know...), and some peas with carrots..."
Granddaddy: "Aw, they don't want no peas. That's all we been eatin is peas. {talking to Noah} You don't want none of 'em 'ol mashed up peas, do ya?"
MamMaw: {polite laugh} "Well, when there's nothing left in the fridge, and all there is is peas, I bet you'll eat it."

Brad decides to take her up on the macaroni and cheese. Which lead to me eating some too. I mean, who can pass up freshly baked, grandma made, crisp on the top, comforting mac 'n cheese? Tony Horton (P90X) is not going to like this.

I ate some peas for Granddaddy, and also to ease my guilt of the mac 'n cheese.

And somehow, even after telling MamMaw that I was on a strict diet, I got roped into eating dessert. She explained, you see, that she normally doesn't make dessert anymore for the two of them. But she had a brunch with the ladies at church that morning, and she had been in charge of the dessert and "they needed us to help them eat it".

She made us each, Granddaddy included, a bowl. He didn't recognize it and wanted to know what it was.

MamMaw B: "It's called Black Forest Cherry Trifle."

A few minutes go by with us chatting about different things like custom cabinets, baking, etc.

Granddaddy: "I don't know Barb, after all that time you spent on it, I don't believe I'd make this again."
MamMaw: "Well, I know. It's not the kind of dessert we usually eat, but we had a menu to follow, and that's what I was told to make."
Granddaddy: "Well, I wouldn't make it again. It took you all day to make it, and it aint all that great."

However, the bowl was empty. They used to eat dessert after lunch and dinner, but they cut back after Christmas. Granddaddy informed us that they stopped eating sweets, switched from "white bread to brown bread", and he still hadn't lost a pound. I guess any dessert is better than none.

And that's a typical visit with the grandparents.